West Virginia Democrat. [volume] (Charles Town, W. Va.) 1885-1890, 1887-10-07
IMPORTANT OPINION
Announced by Judge Jackson, in the
United States Court Yesterday.
Wheeling Register of lst inst.

w nccllnR INtSlStcI iSt
The United States District Court adj
iourned yesterday. Judge Jackson de-
livered his opinion in the chancery
cause of Opie VS.. Castleman, in which
the Court held that the plaintiff was
right in his claim and he was entitled,
in equity and law, to the relief sought.
The case is of so unusual and interest
ing a nature, that it is worthy of detail
ed narration,
In 1856 Hiram l.. Opie, the father OF
the plaintiff, sold TO Henry Castleman,
now deceased, a tract OF land in Jeiier-
son county, then in the State of Virgin
ia, for the sum of SAL, 1886, ten thousand
dollars cash in hand, and the remainder
in deferred installments, evidenced by
notes bearing date January LIST, 1856, the
first for 5000, due January |, 1851; the
second for $1,000, bearing date January
|, 1858, and six other notes for $2,622.27,
PAYABLE respectively January /, 1888,
iS60, 1861, 1862, 1863 and 1864, all bearing
interest from date. Shortly after the
sale of the land, Opie removed to Angus
Ia county, Va, where he resided until
his death in 1862. AT the time of the
sale Il proper deed was made for the
land, and the deferred payments were
secured by deed of trust. When the
grantor died there remained unpaid
four Of the deferred payments, for the
sum of 81, CD IS each. In NovemDr, lSi2,
the widow of the deceased Hi:em l..
Opie and Thomas l.. Opie qualified as
personal representatives of the estate of
the decedent.
Late in the year 1867, Castleman, know
ing there was due on the purchase mon
ey of the notes which had matured Jan
uarv l, 1861, and January l, 1862, some
thing like $1,000, with unpaid interest,
81 hn a
States and Virginia bank notes sufficient
to paw off the notes due, and crossing
the military lines to Augusta county, he
found Mrs. Opie, one of the personal
representatives above mentioned, and
paid of and discharged the notes then
overdue, the money paid by INN at the
time being deprecated. At the time
this payment was made, Mary and John,
heirs of the decedent, were under age,
and the plaintiff in this action was away
from home and has not ratified the act
ion ofthe personal representatives OF the
estate. Subsequently Castieinan, PAD
and discharged the noes which fell due
in January, 1863 and 1864 in the depre-
ciated currency, and in 1860 release
was executed by the trustee IN the deed
of trust upon the request OF Mrs. Opie,
the administrators of estate. The estate
of the decedent was not IN debt, but the
greater part of the money which thus
came into the possession OF the personal
representative was invested in the bonds
of the Confederate States.
These being the facts in the case, the
question which presented itself for the
consideration of the Court was, were the
payments made on contract entered
into before the war, and which at the
time were to be discharged i'll the lawful
money of the United States, satisfied
and eXtinguished by the payments made
to the fiduciaries in q deprecated cur
rency?
In concluding his opinion which is
lengthy and interesting Judge Jackson
said:
1--WE are of opinion that not only is
the plaintiff as matter OF strict legal
right entitled to the relief sought, but
that it is simple justice.
"'rhe heirs of Castleman enjoy land
cd estate of great value, which was pur-
chased to be paid for in the lawful mon
ey of the United States, and the heirs of
Opie who are sueing in this case have
never received the consideration prom
ised under the contract OF 1856. We
take no notice of the fact that the money
received by the executors, as payment
o. the debts due. had some value, for the
reason that we hold the payment, as far
as the parties to this action are concern
Ell, was illegal and void, and any relief
the heirs of Castleman may have, il, in
fact, they have any, is against the exec
utor."
A decree will be prepared in conform
ity with the views of the Court as ex-
pressed in the opinion, referring the
cause TO commissioner TO ascertain the
interests of the plaintiffs and the two
heirs of John Opie and Mrs. Mead in the
debt secured bv the deed of trust upon
the land sold by their ancestor. and TO
ascertain any other liens upon id
lands.
The attorneys in the cause were Col.
Robert White for the plaintiff and Mar
shall Mccormick and X. t. Barton, of
Virginia, for the defendants.
We learn that there are some im-